Island



(No Model.)

H. HOWARD.

PLATFORM DOOR FOR CARS.

No. 448,344. Patented Mar. 17, 1891.

I WITNESSES: INVENTOH 4 4 Lm Q QM L @fi Nrrri STATES PATENT men.

HENRY l'lOlVARD, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND.

PLATFORM-DOOR FOR CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 448,344, dated March 17, 18191.

Application filed January 21, 1891. Serial, No. 378,541- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY HOWARD, of

Providence, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gates or Doors for Railway-Car Platforms; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention is an improvement in the mode of constructing and operating the gates or doors used to close the side entrances to railway-car platforms for the purpose of regulating the ingress and egress and to make the passage from one car of a train to an adjoin ing car safe and comfortable for persons at all times.

It is fully illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Figure l is a vertical section of a portion of the end of a car, taken longitudinally through the middle on line on :0, Fig. 3, showing an elevation of the gate or door and the parts of the car adjoining. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of a railway-car, showing the outer edge of the doors in position. Fig. 3 is a plan View, in horizontal section, of the portion of a car shown in Fig. 1 on line .2 z, showing the position of the gates or doors and the arrangement of the parts of the car for receiving the same when the passage-way is open.

Fig. 1 represents the improvement as it appears to a person standing on one side of the car. A portion of the inner partition is removed to show the position in dotted lines of the gate when it has been slid into its re cess to open the passage-way of the platform, the gate 0. when closed being represented in full lines. It is made wide enough to reach across and close the passage-way of the platform and has at its top two pulleys f, pinned on brackets, by which the gate is suspended from a bar or rail 6, which has its outer end attached to the upper part of the stanchion or bar a. The inner portion of the rail 6 is supported on the end frame it of the car, also by the inner partition I) of the car, in such position that the pulleys f on thegate will be free to traverse nearly its whole length. It may be preferred in some cases that the gate be made to slide on a rail placed underneath it and the upper rail used as a lateral guide to keep the gate steady and from striking the sides of the opening in the end of the car when it is movedin and out of its recess; The recesses are made one on each side of the usual entrance to the ear and just within the lines of the outer side edges of the platform. This recess for receiving the gate when open consists of an opening of a proper size to receive the height and thickness of the gate made in the end of the car opposite to the center of the partition I) of the closets inside of the car, which partitions may be utilized to form the receptacles for the doors by being made double in that part forming a recess be tween the two sides deep enough in from the outside of the end of the car to receive the gate and have the outer side of it come about flush with the end of the car and be finished in a style to agree in appearance with the surrounding parts of the car. The doors can be made to slide to one side of the partition I) instead of being inclosed, if it is so preferred. The gates or doors may be made of small metallic network extended on border-frames, with suitable cross-bars to support the netting between the sides of the frames, or they may be made in the usual way of constructing doors supported at the top or bottom, or bot-h, as may be found desirable under different conditions. hen the gates are drawn out from their recess, they come along across the side edge of the platform, thus forming an ordinary closed vestibule on the platform.

The gates may be provided with catches or fastenings placed on the inside and not accessible to persons on the outside of them. A gate arranged to open as described is not I liable to crowd passengers off of a car-platform and can be opened and closed in a crowded condition of the platforms, when it would be impossible to opengates that swung inward, and it will not do to havethem swing outward, because of their liability to open while the cars are in motion and cause damage by striking against passing cars, &c. They also allow for the unobstructed use of the whole platform instead of narrowing it in, as other gates do, impeding passengers and injuring their garments, especially those of ladies. It is contemplated that the door will preferably be provided with a spring-catch at or near its inner edge, which, being released by emergingfrom the aperture,willautomatically fasten the door in a closed position until released by a pressure on the spring-catch; also that the outer edge of the doorshall be provided with a lock and key to fasten it back.

Having thus described my improvements, I claim as my invention and desire to secure 10 by Letters Patent- 1. A car having on each side of its usual entrance a recess at right angles to said entrance, such recess being just within the line of the outer side edge of the platform, in combination with sliding doors fitting such recesses, as set forth.

2. A railway-car with a hallway, entry, porch, or vestibule, formed by constructing in the interior of the car double partitions at the ends of the car at right angles with the ends thereof and forming between the partition-walls an inclosure into which doors to be used as sides of the hall, porch, or vestibule can be moved and concealed.

HENRY HOVARD.

Witnesses:

BENJ. ARNOLD, CHARLES T. HOWARD. 

